With My Dying Breath
by SaraSalvatore
Summary: Harry Potter is dead, killed by Voldemort in the final battle. In order to save the wizarding world from Voldemort's reign, Hermione must go back in time to Tom Riddle's era and try and change him before he becomes the monster he is today. But as she is thrust into a dark world filled with hatred, lust, and brutal love, Hermione finds that not everything is always black and white.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry for not posting my other stories, but they are currently on hiatus :(... A lot has been going on this year, and school starts on Monday! So I may not update for a while. Anyways, this story is a time-travel fic, a Tom Riddle one, of course! Read and review :) Oh, and the crazy awesome image for this story was made by (sol) TDA :D**

Hermione watched in muted horror as Harry Potter's lifeless body fell to the ground with a flash of green light. With a wave of Voldemort's wand, her hope had been shattered. The-Boy-Who-Lived, had been murdered by the man that had started all of this madness.

In that instant, it was over.

She stood there in the rubble of the castle, her posture stiff and rigid from the shock of seeing her best friend fall to the floor, her mind still not fully comprehending what horrid thing had just happened. Time seemed to have slowed to a sluggish crawl, and the earth itself seemed to have stopped spinning because of it. Harry Potter was dead. Harry James Potter, her best friend, the _Chosen One_, lay dead on the ground in front of gasped and clutched at her chest. She stared at his limp body, his still face, his disheveled black hair, and was knocked to her knees from the pain.

Her gaze switched to the man who had done this, and for a mere moment, she just stared in disbelief. How could someone be this cruel, this _evil_? How could he kill an _innocent_ boy, and smile merrily afterwards? How could he be so, so..._heartless_? Pure hatred bubbled up into her chest, and she launched herself at him, screaming with immeasurable fury.

Hermione was only ten feet away from Voldemort and his followers when a pair of lanky arms wrapped around her small waist, lifting her up into the air. She shrieked, thrashing her legs and arms about, trying to get free from the bonds holding her away from the murderer in front of her. Her eyes never left Voldemort's as she was dragged back into the crushed remains of Hogwarts, her eyes speaking the words that her mouth couldn't quite form.

He would pay. He would _pay_ for what he's done to them.

"Hermione! _Hermione!_" His quiet, wavering voice brought her back into the gruesome reality that surrounded her. She sobbed into a red shirt, then lifted her head to meet the vivid blue eyes of Ronald Weasley. He was crying as well, and his miserable expression broke what was left of her already shattered heart.

"Her_..._Hermione...," he cried, trying to speak through the pain of his friend's death. He gripped her shoulder's tightly in his grimy hands, and pulled her into an embrace. They were no longer a trio; no longer were they the three best friends that had united to kill Voldemort. No longer were they the friends that had become some sort of a makeshift family. The sounds of their obvious distress caused the other survivors to gather around them and stare in horror at the scene that lay before them.

"_No!_" She could hear the sound of Ginny's heartbreaking scream, and Hermione knew how the red-head felt. Through her tear stained eyes, she could see Mr. Weasley hold back Ginny's tiny form, his head shaking slowly back and forth. Voldemort laughed with glee, and held his arms out around him like a child.

"Harry Potter is _dead!_" More of the survivors were forming at the entrance to the castle, hoping that by some miracle, Harry would jump up and be okay. That there would still be a chance to win the war, that they would still be able to go home to their friends and families.

"And now the time has come for you to join us!" He stepped forward and motioned back at Harry's lifeless body.

"You have no hope left, other than to join our ranks, and feel my mercy! Step forward, and be _rewarded_!" His words were heard by everyone, and yet there was no movement. No betrayal.

"Draco!" Narcissa spoke from out of nowhere, stepping forward and holding her hands out to her beloved son. His father mimicked his wife's actions, his eyes sending out a silent plea to his son. Hermione swiveled her head around to see Draco standing close to her left, staring at his parents with an unreadable expression. His blonde hair was covered in rubble, and she noticed the water in his eyes, the tears he wouldn't let fall.

"No," His voice was soft and worn, but his determination was clear.

His mother tilted her head at the one word that was spoken, and shook slightly at the sound of it. Voldemort cackled with mirth, and smiled at the boy's outrageous courage. Narcissa looked down at her small feet, nodded, and swallowed loudly. What she did then shocked everyone, on either sides. She raised her head to look at the well built form of her son, and walked briskly over to his side. Bellatrix gasped and pushed through several Death Eaters to glare at the sister, infuriated.

"_Traitor_!" She hissed with malice. Voldemort looked only amused, and pushed Bellatrix harshly back into the crowd behind him.

"Hush, Bella. Let them choose to die, if that is what they wish," His words sparked something in Lucius Malfoy's eyes, and he stepped forward to join his wife and son on the other side. Hermione gaped at the three of them, and her heart warmed faintly at the choice Draco had made. She only hoped that his decision wouldn't get him killed.

"Anyone else?" His question was answered by silence, as nobody on either sides moved an inch. Hermione's heart clenched tightly, and she knew this calm would last only seconds longer. Voldemort smiled, and raised his wand upwards, sending off green sparks into the dark and cloudy sky.

The world erupted into chaos.

The Death Eaters surged forward, shooting green spells at those brave souls who refused to join them. In just mere seconds, dozens of people fell to the floor, much like Harry had before them. Ginny, Neville, Seamus, Dean, Mr. Weasley, and Fred were among them. Hermione retched as she was pulled to her feet by Ron, and together they ran into the remains of the castle. Hermione's mind raced as she twisted backwards, sending out a spell that hit one of the Death Eaters in the chest. She turned back around and bolted through the door that Ron had just opened for her.

And so they ran on. Through the castle, running to somewhere where they would be safe, if there was such a place. Hermione's feet pounded harshly against the ground, tripping occasionally on small rocks that had fallen, and her lungs burned with every breath she took. She gasped for air, leaning onto a crumbling wall for support.

"R-Ron!" The red head rushed to her side, holding her tightly to his chest.

"How did this _happen_?" She choked out her question. The battle had nearly been won! The only Horcrux left had been the snake, Nagini, and they were close to killing her as well. Then Voldemort spoke to them, ordering Harry to come to the Forbidden Forest to meet his fate. Never in a million years had Hermione thought that Harry would be stupid enough to actually _listen_ to him! She sighed, and tried to compose herself. Harry was dead. They were _all_ dead. It would be stupid to cry over it, when there was no changing the past. _Wait_! Hermione froze.

0 _There was no changing the past_. But that wasn't quite true, was it? Her mind raced to a moment in her fifth year, just after the war had claimed Sirius Black's life. Dumbledore had called her into his office for a reason unknown to her. She remembered the events of that day as clear as she could remember her own name.

_Hermione knocked gently on the door to the headmaster's office. She didn't know why he had sent for her, but she figured it had something to do with Harry. Her heart clenched at the thought of her best friend. He had said nearly nothing for several days now, still grieving the loss of his only family member. She had tried to reach out to him, but he had only responded by brushing past her. He would come around, whenever he was ready to._

_ "You may enter," Dumbledore's comforting voice called out to her. She slowly pushed open the door and walked in. The room looked the same as the last time she had visited, the portraits of the previous headmasters smiling down at her. Fawkes tilted his head when he saw Hermione, and she marveled at the intelligence that sparkled in the bird's eyes. She turned her head to look at the headmaster, and smiled when she caught sight of his friendly face._

_ "Please, have a seat, Miss Granger," She obeyed, and plopped down into one of the comfy chairs that sat in front of Dumbledore's desk._

_ "How are you, my dear?" His eyes probed her mind for information, and Hermione frowned slightly._

_ "Harry's not doing well," She looked at her hands that were folded in her lap. Dumbledore smiled._

_ "I've noticed," He raised his silver eyebrows. "But, Miss Granger, I didn't ask about Harry. I asked about _you_." She looked up at him in slight disbelief. Nobody had ever stopped and asked about how _she_ was doing, as it had always been about how Harry was. Which she hadn't really minded that much, she was worried about Harry as well. Dumbledore's question had caught her off guard, and she took a moment to think of an answer._

_ "I've been better," She smiled carefully up at him, a smile that he returned. The grin left his lips as quickly as it had come, and for the first time, Hermione saw the light go out of his bright eyes. Hermione frowned at the sudden change, and tensed, sensing that something bad was going to happen._

_ "Miss Granger, there is a reason I have called you here this evening," He looked down at his hands, looking reluctant to speak what was on his mind._

_ "There are dark times ahead, Miss Granger, much darker than they are now. I fear we may not be able to stop what is to come. As much as it pains me to say this, I fear that we shall lose this war," Hermione's heart stopped, and she gripped the sides of her chair. Her hope plummeted and shattered with the words spoken. If Dumbledore had given up, then they were doomed to fail. She lowered her head, and tried to hold back her tears._

_ "Unless-," With that one word her head shot back up. _

_ Unless! What a wonderful word! Her hope was partially restored, and the light was already returning to her chocolate brown eyes._

_ "Unless there _is_ no war," _

_ His words confused her. How could there be no war? The war had already started, and there was no way to reverse it! Hermione froze and frowned. Or is there? Could it be? Was it even _possible_? Dumbledore smiled, and chuckled at how bright the young witch was._

_ "You mean we have to stop the war before it even begins?" She slowly smiled, realizing how brilliant the plan was. Dumbledore nodded at her._

_ "Someone must return to Riddle's era, before he is turned into the man he is now," Hermione nodded, and sat back in her chair. She gulped and ran her hands through her hair._

_ "When?" Her voice wavered, and Dumbledore shook his head._

_ "With luck, not any time soon. We will only use this plan if it is _absolutely_ necessary," With Dumbledore's words, Hermione released the breath she hadn't even noticed she was holding in. She had time. She closed her eyes, and sighed. She stood, and made her way to the door._

_ "Oh, and Miss Granger?" She turned back to him. He nodded at her._

_ "This will be our little secret," And with that, she was sworn into secrecy._

It had been so long ago, she had nearly forgotten about it. It had crossed her mind once before, when they were hunting the Horcruxes down, but things had been going so well at the time, she thought that they had had a chance of defeating Voldemort. But now she realized that she had no other option. She looked up at Ron, and closed her brown eyes, wishing that everything would go back to the way it was before the war had started. Before everything had begun in fourth year. Before...before...well, before all of _this_.

Hermione opened her eyes and tugged fiercely at a lock of her brown hair. She pulled on Ron's hand, and lead him towards their only chance of survival.

**A/N: So what did you think? Let me know. And I'm not sure if it should just be Hermione who goes back in time, or multiple people. Hmmm...tell me your thoughts in a review my lovely little muggles :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Sooooo I want to thank my reviewers; **TannerDarko, Hermione Voldemort Riddle, phoenixqueen15, MoonPrancerxoxo, **and** Kelly Heartz**, ****for all of their lovely words :) I hope that there's more to come! I'm writing this story as fast as I can, 'cause with school I may not be able to update much. Read and review :)**

_This is absolute madness. _Hermione Granger scowled at the ground as she sprinted through the wreckage of the castle, dragging Ron along with her. She didn't know how this whole time travel thing was going to work, or even _if_ it would work, but she knew that she had to at least _try_. It was their only chance of survival, and after Harry and the others had been killed, and she felt like she owed it to them to make it right once again.

"Hermione! Where are we _going_?" Ron shouted over the deafening sounds of exploding walls and screaming people. She didn't answer at first, stopping to shoot a spell at a Death Eater, who was locked in combat with Luna Lovegood. The spell hit the Death Eater on his robed chest, and sent him flying about ten feet away from them, totally unconscious.

She turned back to Ron.

"Dumbledore's office!" she barked. Ron's face was stunned as they continued running through the castle. He shook his head, and looked back up at Hermione.

"_What_? Why are we going there? I mean, what's our _plan_?"

Hermione scowled once again.

"Ronald, I don't even know if this is going to work, so please; _shut the bloody hell up_!" She dodged a spell that was sent her way, and tripped over some rubble, her body landing roughly on the ground. Ron bent down, and hurriedly helped her back up to her feet . They were back to running once again, but this time they were too late, and a Death Eater had caught up to them.

"_Hermione_!" Ron shoved her out of the way of an oncoming spell, and she landed again in the rubble, scraping her knees and hands. Ron ducked, barely avoiding the spell himself. They both turned to face Bellatrix, who was laughing merrily.

Hermione's heart skipped a beat.

They couldn't take on Bellatrix, not even the two of them fighting together. Ron blocked another spell that flew at him, and Hermione dodged a green light that narrowly missed her left ear. Side by side, Ronald and Hermione fought, giving it their all.

They were dodging spells left and right, and sending them off when they had the chance, but the whole thing was based on the pure chance of getting out of the way. It seemed like all hope was lost, that is, until a voice shouted out to Hermione.

"Granger! Get down!" Hermione knew by now to instantly obey those stray commands, as they usually saved her life. She forced herself down to the ground, her stomach roughly hitting the floor. Why did she _always_ seem to end up on the floor like this?

A spell was cast above her, one that even Bellatrix couldn't block. Hermione looked up to see one man she _never_ thought would save her life;

Draco Malfoy.

He fought with grace and ease, and made it seem like fighting Bellatrix was as easy as him breathing. Obviously he had practiced dueling with her before, and knew all of her techniques for fighting. He stunned Bellatrix quickly, much to everyone's amazement, and bent down to help Hermione up.

She took his hand quickly, and looked up into his pale grey eyes. She didn't understand him, or why he had helped her and Ron, but she wasn't about to turn away from help when it was looking her straight in the face. Draco smiled at her, a sort of sad little grin, before turning around to leave. Hermione confused herself by doing this, but she turned, and called out to his retreating figure.

"Malfoy, wait!"

Draco froze, and slowly turned back around.

"Yes?" He drawled, keeping his bored tone even under these extreme circumstances. Hermione shook her head, not knowing why she was doing this. Had common sense all but left her?

"Come with us," It was not a command, but a quiet plea. She knew that their chances of survival were thin without him, and she did not want to take the chance of losing. And, there was something about him, something that had _changed_, that made her simply want him to come along with them.

Ron looked baffled, but was smart enough not to complain. Malfoy mimicked Ronald's expression, but recovered quickly, and raised a single blonde eyebrow at her.

He simply nodded, and walked casually back to where Hermione and Ron stood together.

"Where to?"

Hermione's face lit up in a smile, and she nodded towards their destination.

"Dumbledore's office."

Draco's reaction was immediate.

"Dumbledore's office? _Why_? How's that going to help us win this battle?" His face showed his distaste, as he ran alongside the two friends.

"Who knows? It may not, but I've still got to try,"

Draco was silent, and Hermione knew he had understood her. They ran as fast as they could without tripping over anything or running into any more Death Eaters. The last thing they needed was to get into any more fights.

Hermione stopped running after a few minutes, and bent over, completely out of breath. The boys followed her lead, and tried to catch their breath beside her.

Hermione listened to the sounds that were around her, and wondered what was going through everyone else's head at this time. She could hear the screaming of those who were losing, and felt a sudden pang of fear go through her broken heart.

What if this didn't work?

Then what would happen?

They would have no option but to stand and fight, she supposed, and with the amount of people left on both sides, Hermione knew that that was impossible. The truth of the matter was, there _was_ no other option. This either worked, or they fought until they died. That was it. But as she thought, Hermione's hopes suddenly lifted.

When was Dumbledore ever wrong? He was _always_ right, so how could this go wrong? She forced herself up, and put one foot in front of the other. She could do this.

The boys had a hard time keeping up with her as she ran, probably because they were not as motivated as herself. She imagined this from their point of view. They were following her blindly, trusting her instincts. I guess after seven years of using Hermione's brains, Ron had finally learned to just go with it. But what about Malfoy? He didn't know her like Ron did, so why was he going along with it?

Hermione shook her head, trying to get these thoughts out of her head. They weren't going to help them. What would help was running faster and getting there sooner.

With Hermione's speed, it only took a few minutes longer to get there, and when they stopped in front of the staircase, the boys were nearly passed out with the strain of running so fast.

"Bloody hell, Granger! Where'd you learn to run like that?" Malfoy gasped, clutching at his side in pain. Hermione ignored him, and started pushing aside the rubble that was blocking the entrance to Dumbledore's office.

"Help me with this, will you?" She barked, causing the two boys to look at each other in surprise. They both had never seen her in such a state, that her behavior shocked them. They quickly rushed to her side, and began pushing aside the heavy boulders that were blocking the entrance. When there was enough room to crawl through, Hermione practically jumped into the newly made hole.

When she climbed to the top of the staircase, and opened the door, she was shocked at how peaceful it looked. Everything was exactly what she remembered it as, except for the new portrait of Dumbledore hanging up. She immediately went to Dumbledore, who was sitting there with his hands folded across his lap.

"Dumbledore!" Hermione gasped. It had been so long since she last saw him, that she nearly burst into tears at seeing his smiling face. He looked so friendly, so _happy_, that she almost broke down right there. She sniffled, ad wiped at a tear.

"I-I came for, well, you know what..." She spoke, and Dumbledore nodded back at her. Ronald turned to Hermione, and held up his hands in frustration.

"Are you people going to tell me what is going on? What are we _doing_ here? We should be out there- _helping_ those people!"

Hermione whipped around, fuming.

"And what do you think we could do, Ronald? We can't just rush in and save the day! We'd get ourselves killed within minutes! It'd be three against three _dozen_, Ronald! Even _more_ than that!"

He grew red and sputtered, trying to think of something to say to her.

"Well, we have to do _something_!"

"We _are_ Ronald! If you'd just stop for a moment and let me do this, you'd see!"

Ron sighed, and motioned with his hands for Hermione to continue the conversation, so she faced Dumbledore once again.

"How are you, my dear?"

His question caught her off guard, and she stared up at him with confused eyes. He wanted to know how she was? She laughed deeply, and raised a hand to her mouth. He wanted to know how she was! Hermione laughed again; she laughed and laughed, until her sides hurt from all of it. The boys looked at her like she had grown a second head, but didn't say anything. Dumbledore just sat there, his hands still in his lap.

"How am I?" She looked up at him, the pain clear in her eyes.

"My best friend was just _murdered_, and the war is going to be lost, Professor. I'm not exactly 'doing very well'..." She spoke with malice, and the boys both shrank back at the tone of voice she held.

They had never seen Hermione like this before, and quite honestly, it scared both of them. But Dumbledore appeared unfazed as he continued to look Hermione up and down, seemingly searching for something. Hermione shook her head, and her shoulders sank down with the weight of the world. She sighed, and rubbed her forehead.

"I'm sorry, Professor, I've just been through hell and what seemed like our last chance of survival is gone. I'm just a little ruffled."

Dumbledore nodded at her.

"It's perfectly alright, my dear. We've all been through some difficult times recently. Now, I assume you are here about the time traveling?" Dumbledore spoke slowly, not noticing the sudden look of shock that passed through the boys.

"_Time travel_?" Ron was the only one who could speak at the moment, as Draco was too busy making a face that was somewhere in between horror and surprise. He turned to Hermione, gaping.

"Why didn't you tell me any of this?"

Hermione shot him a pointed look.

"We were too busy trying not to get killed, Ronald..."

"Oh...I... I suppose you're right," He admitted, and fell silent. Hermione sighed.

"Ron, this is our only option. We can't just stand and fight _here_. Think about it, with this, we could stop the war before it had even started!"

Ron hesitantly nodded, obviously seeing the logic in this. Hermione turned back to Dumbledore, who began to speak.

"Everything you will need is in that drawer in the desk," He pointed a narrow finger towards his large desk. Hermione walked over to it, and pulled open the said drawer. Inside, there were several envelopes addressed to several different people, Hermione included.

"Sir?"

"If Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Weasley are to be traveling with you, then they will need new identities. I suggest that you have one as well,"

Hermione saw the logic in this, but her blood began to boil at the thought of pretending to be someone other than who she was.

"Sir, with all due respect, I am uncomfortable with changing my identity. I understand why Ron and Malfoy must, because they will have ancestors in that time period, but I have no one. No one will recognize my name, so I don't see why not," She looked up into the Professor's eyes, and was amazed that even in a portrait, his eyes could still twinkle.

"Of course, Miss Granger. I understand completely, and I admire you for standing up for yourself,"

Hermione flushed, but quickly regained her composure, and asked a vital question.

"So, how does this work, exactly?"

Dumbledore smiled.

"I have managed to create a new device, a portkey, you make call it. Just touch it, and say the date you want to go back to," He smiled. "It will take you there."

Hermione nearly gasped aloud. He had created a portkey that could take people back in time? She could only imagine how many years of effort it took to successfully complete an item such as that. She shook her head, and marveled at the intelligence of the man in the portrait.

"Alright," Hermione sighed. "Let's do this."

Dumbledore pointed her to another drawer, and pulled out the time portkey.

It was a Licorice Wand.

Hermione cracked a smile, and wanted to laugh at the object in front of her. A Licorice Wand. It was so Dumbledore, to do something like this. Hermione held tight to the documents in one hand, and grabbed the Licorice Wand in another. Ron and Draco followed her lead, and grabbed onto the Wand.

Hermione took a deep breath in through her nose, and released it slowly out of her mouth.

"September 1st, 1944." She spoke calmly, as if her heart wasn't in her throat.

There was a flash of light, and then they were gone.

**A/N: Hey guys, sorry for the wait, but I had so many other stories to work on! Well, that was the next chapter, and I'll begin working on the next right away :)**


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